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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23977015">And Now for Something Completely Different</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/SteelBlaidd/pseuds/SteelBlaidd'>SteelBlaidd</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Scenes from a Miraculous Life [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Miraculous Ladybug</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Bisexual Disaster Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Eat your heart out Danny Ocean, Fluff and Angst, I am a Baaad person, Identity Reveal, Ladybug caught flat-footed, Marriage Proposal, Multi, NOT Aged-up, Polyamory, Post-Hawk Moth Defeat, Post-Season/Series 05, Romance, Some problems you can't solve by hitting them, timing is everything</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 18:48:19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,416</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23977015</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/SteelBlaidd/pseuds/SteelBlaidd</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Hawk Moth is defeated!</p><p>Chat Noir is ready to get on with the rest of his life.</p><p>Really, <i>really</i> ready.</p><p>Maybe a little <i>to</i> ready.</p><p>That's OK though. Ladybug always knows how to set things right.</p><p>Chat ups his game from confession to proposal.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Luka Couffaine, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug/Kagami Tsurugi, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe, Ivan Bruel/Mylène Haprèle, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug/Kagami Tsurugi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Scenes from a Miraculous Life [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1728766</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>60</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Is That Your Final Answer?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">


        <li>
            Inspired by

            <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23181268">A Proposal</a> by <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/mostlovedgirl/pseuds/mostlovedgirl">mostlovedgirl</a>.
        </li>

    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is my first foray back into fan fic in about 15 years.</p><p>I had been following MLB casually until i watched  Season 3 (netflix 5)  re-binged the whole series and started consuming Fanfic like a pot head goes through cheese doodles.</p><p>The seed for this was rattling around in my head for a few days until reading mostlovedgirls A Proposal tipped me over the edge into actually writing and publishing it.</p>
    </blockquote><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Hawk Moth is defeated!</p><p>Now what?</p><p>Adrien has an idea and Chat makes a daring proposal.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This was originally posted un-betaed. Update to fix the errors and add a few needed details.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It was done.  Finally.</p><p>Chat Noir and Ladybug stood shoulder to shoulder on the observation deck of the Eiffel Tower, chests heaving from their exertions.  Hawk Moth and Mayura sat slumped unconscious, bound back to back in the cords of her Yo-yo and Queen Bee’s Trompo. The rest of her friend and fellow Miraculous holders stood scattered around them.</p><p>Suddenly her partner and best friend was kneeling in front of her, his back to the captured villains her left hand clasped between both of his.</p><p>“Chat “ she said, leary of whatever wild inanity he was about to foist on her. “What are you doing?”</p><p>“Something I've wanted to do since the day we defeated Stoneheart and you stood tall before the citizens of Paris and swore we would protect them from Hawk Moth. Together.” </p><p>She felt the furrow between her brows deepening with every word.</p><p>“Ladybug, you are the most amazing, intelligent, kind, clever, creative, funny and beautiful woman I have ever known.” His left hand slipped in and out of his pocket. “Would you do me the honor of being my wife?“</p><p>Marinette’s eyebrows leaped past her hairline as she stared at the gold ring sparkling with black, red, and blue stones Chat held between them, then lowered again as she looked back to his face which was suffused with an expression of mingled awe and hope.</p><p>“Chat you are being ridiculous," she said, in the most severe ‘enough-of-your-nonsense’ tone she could manage. “We can't get married. We don't even know each other's identities.” <em> And whose fault is that, </em>a treacherous voice whispered in the back of her mind. </p><p>“But I do know who you are Marinette.” Her eyes went wide and everything else but Chat Noir’s face vanished from her attention. Even the squeals that were coming from wherever Rose, now holder of the Boar Miraculous, was probably melting into a puddle of ecstatic goop faded into the background.</p><p>“How-” she whispered, as she tried desperately to remember if she had said or done anything that could have disclosed her identity.</p><p>“Plagg. Claws in.“</p><p>Marinette blinked at the flash of green light then blushed furiously as the boy she had never been able to stop being in love with, no matter how hard she’d tried, took the place of her best friend and partner. Instead of his usual casual jeans, t-shirt and white button up, he wore a black suit and green dress shirt with the collar open down to the middle of his chest. <em> Oh gods, he is so </em> <em>hot</em>, bubbled up from <em> somewhere </em> that was definitely <em> not </em>below her belly button.</p><p>She blinked again. He was still looking at her as if she was the whole world.</p><p>Marinette tried to say SOMETHING, anything, but there were no words in her brain and no air in her throat and for seconds that seemed like forever she stood, hand still forgotten in his, the only thing she could hear was her own voice mewling like a lost kitten caught quivering between  feelings of crushing inadequacy that whimpered <em> no </em> to the untouchable Adonis she had pined after and blinding joy shouting <em> YES </em>to her perfect partner.</p><p>The whole world seemed to hold its breath.</p><p>“Adrien Agreste you are barely sixteen years old! We can't get <em>Married</em> yet!” Marinette shrieked when she finally found her voice. </p><p>“You said yet!  Is that a yes? We’ll go with yes. Paw-some! A long engagement is purrrr-fectly fine with me.” Adrien’s face was suddenly right in front of hers, their noses almost touching.</p><p>Her brain hiccoughed down the well worn path:  <em> Wedding. House. Hugo. Emma. Louis. Hamster named-  </em></p><p>“Kagami, wh-what about Kagami?” she stammered her voice pitching up in panic as her mind stripped its gears trying to reconcile Chat’s enthusiastically lecherous grin on the usually subdued and gentle face of her long term crush while simultaneously not imagining increasingly baroque and lethal possible responses that her very aggressive friend and teammate might have to Marinette poaching her boyfriend. </p><p> “Oh, right, Kagami” </p><p>Adrien’s gaze shifted away from hers to look over her right shoulder.</p><p>“Hey, Kagami”, he caroled in a with studied casualness, “Would you like to marry Marinette, too?”</p><p>From behind her came the reply in her friend’s typically flat tones “My mother would swallow her tongue.” Marinette swore she could hear a sudden fierce grin and evil sparkle in the swords woman's eyes in her next words “Love to.”</p><p>Adrien's eyes locked back on her own, his grin somehow growing wider.</p><p>“An-and Luka,” she whispered, grasping at the name of her own boy-friend but never quite boyfriend in what she knew was a last ditch desperate effort to get off the roller-coaster of the future before she tipped over the edge and fell drowning into the emerald eyes so close to her own. </p><p>“I'm game. Four part harmony makes beautiful music.” She started at the soft whisper of the musician’s voice over her left shoulder. His breath hot past her ear. The infinite calm radiating off him like the chill of an open freezer. A soothing cool contrast to the fire raging through her blood.  Her face felt like a forest fire, her chest as if she had swallowed the sun.  </p><p>“Any other objections?” came the low purring voice of the boy (<em>boy! shoulders like that don’t belong to any damn boy!)  </em>in front of her. </p><p>Marinette shook her head almost too slightly to see, the end of her nose not quite brushing his.  Her eyes felt like if they grew any wider they would fall clean out of her head.</p><p>“May we kiss you then?“ His sultry voice was almost too soft to hear. Her answering nod was again barely perceptible.</p><p>His head tilted as he gently touched his lips to hers. Her eyes closed as the pressure grew and a pink fog descended as all the blood in her body rushed to her face. And...other places. She thought she felt lips nuzzling the sides of her neck and nipping at her ears. <em> We. He said we. I wasn't planning on this big a WE. I ought to stop th~is. Is that a hand?! Whose hand and where is it go~ing! Oh fuck, that feels good.  </em></p><p>Suddenly the lips were gone and her attention snapped back to the reality outside her head as the faint echoes of Carapace repeatedly calling “Dude” in a progressively louder voice registered in her still lust fogged brain. Off in what seemed like the far distance she could hear Chloé’s muffled voice shrieking an incoherent babble.</p><p>“Dudes, before you get too far along you might want to take care of <em>this</em> mess.”</p><p>As her eyes slowly swam back into focus she felt more than saw Chat Noir turn to look at Carapace then beyond him to the still unconscious villains.</p><p>“Oh... Well. That explains a lot.”</p><p>Her heart leaped to her throat at the hitch of pain she could hear in his voice. </p><p>Suddenly he was collapsing before her and she was kneeling at his back, caching him with her arms around his chest face buried in the crock of his neck. His trembling hands steadied as he gripped her forearms. As she felt other arms around her, Marinette looked up, eyes blazing with fury to see what had reduced her proud kitty to a shuddering heap. There before her eyes the villains that had terrorized Paris for two years sat revealed. </p><p>Gabriel Agreste and Nathalie Sancoeur.</p><p>And all her anger blinked out as if turned off by a switch.</p><p> “Oh, <em>mon Minou,</em>” she breathed.  </p><p>She felt more than heard his deep shuddering breaths, her arms tightening around him, as if to pull him inside her own skin where he would be safe from the devastating, impossible truth laid out before them.</p><p>After an eternal moment she felt him try to stand and she moved under his right arm, Luka taking up the same posture on his other side. She could see Kagami standing just to her right, glaring as if she might set their nemesis on fire by sheer will.  Sword drawn, her hands gripped tight around the hilt as if it were an enemy throat. </p><p>“Dude, what do you want to do?  There is no way anybody else can decide this.”</p><p>No one moved. No one spoke. The silence stretched like the squeal of a train braking to avoid a collision.</p><p>“<em><strong>Malinois</strong></em>, call your dad.”</p><p>The world started moving again at Chat’s order. His voice hard, and flat and cold as the iron beneath their feet. </p><p>Marinette looked around for the holder of the Dog Miraculous and startled when she realized that she and Mylène were sitting on Queen Bee, attempting to restrain her as she tried to claw her way across the floor toward their captives. Sabrina was perched on Chloé’s back like a cowboy, hands locked around Chloé’s mouth and her heels dug in on either side of Chloé’s head.  <em>La Petite Souris</em> was split in four, one of herself for each limb. The whole pile kept inching forward.</p><p>“Are- you- <em>sure</em>?” Sabrina asked hesitantly. Her voice hitching with the effort of restraining her friend. “There's no- going back- after.” </p><p>“Yes”, growled Chat. “I don’t care <strong>WHY </strong>he did what he did. He hurt m- people, he helped other people hurt people. The people should decide his fate. “</p><p>As one of the Mice held Sabrina's communicator up so she could call Officer Raincomprix, Adrien turned back to face Marinette. He stood holding their hands together between their chests and staring down into her eyes, “I probably ought to be at home so the police can find me there.” He said. </p><p>“Go. Pegasus can make a portal and if they ask we’ll say we sent him to check on you. Take Nino to be your alibi. ” </p><p>Adrien nodded then hesitated  “Will you still have me even though I am Hawk Moth's son?”</p><p>She raised her arms to wrap them languidly around his neck. </p><p>“Oh Kitty,” she purred. "You are ours now.” Ladybug’s eyes flashed, promising eternal damnation to any that would gainsay her next words. “If Hawk Moth wants you, he’ll have to take you.” </p><p>He kissed her again, slow and gentle this time as if she would pop like one of Rena’s illusions if he pressed too hard, then a faster, fiercer kiss for Kagami and a fist bump with Luka and he and Pegasus and Carapace were gone.</p><p>As the portal disappeared Marinette squared her shoulders, and Ladybug turned to <em> deal </em>with the issue of her future father-in-law.  </p><p>The next several hours were an even more chaotic mess than the fight that had come beforehand. Ivan Burel, Aurochs, had to step in to keep Chloé from dispensing summary justice before the authorities arrived. Liberal use of illusion was necessary to have Chat Noir with them while the police collected the two miscreants and the teams’ statements, then investigated the Agreste Mansion. It was vital to protect both the secret of Chat’s civilian identity and Adrien’s appearance of uninvolvement.</p><p>The roughest patch was discovering the secret room housing Emilie in her life support pod, like Snow White still waiting for her Prince Charming. The medic they had on hand, examined her and the high tech coffin and determined that there was no easy, safe way to remove her and that it would be best if she remained in place until a more experienced panel of medical experts figured out what to do.  Adrien refused to leave the mansion at that point despite the police’s insistence that it was a crime scene and he really ought to go somewhere else. Like the hotel across the street.</p><p> </p><p>“My Mother can't leave so neither will I.“ he insisted. </p><p> </p><p>By then everyone was exhausted and only by dint of some very fast talking and Houdini levels of misdirection they managed to get the whole Miraculous team cycled out and back in as their civilian selves for a sleepover in Adrien’s bed room. Most of their parents were content that a half dozen of Paris’ finest and the Gorilla would be sufficient deterrent to any hanky-panky.</p><p> </p><p>The rest didn’t care.</p><p> </p><p>It wasn't until she snuck off to transform herself that Marinette realized that, at some time in all the confusion, Adrien had slipped the ring onto her finger. She spent a good two or three minutes just staring at it, as a thousand ways the dream she had been offered could turn into a nightmare galloped through her head. And another couple trying to figure out just exactly what was the nature of the proposal she had agreed to.</p><p> </p><p><em> Deep breath. You can do this. Take care of Adrien</em><em> today. Worry about your wedding tomorrow. </em> </p><p> </p><p>“Spots off”</p><hr/><p>Once everyone was gathered together in Adrien’s room (<em>even</em> Chloé and Kagami), bedding found, a massive stack of pizzas delivered, cops shooed out and the door locked, they all finally relaxed. The kwami scattered themselves around the room to observe the festivities and introduce themselves to the other holders.</p><p>Congratulations were offered to the new foursome. Games were played, jokes were told, and everyone did their very best to keep the topic away from the evening's earlier revelations. The effort was successful, until just after midnight when Adrien terminated his impromptu piano concert with a raged rendition of Chopin’s Revolutionary Etude ending with his fists crashing on the keys sobs tearing themselves through his throat.</p><p> </p><p>Everything stopped for ten whole seconds.</p><p> </p><p>Then, gently, as if he were lifting a soap bubble, Ivan picked him up and set him on the bed. He lay there, curled into a quivering ball, Plagg and Tikki snuggling this neck on each shoulder, Kagami and Marinette rocking him between them as he cried himself to sleep.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. That’s the $64,000 question.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Adrian swam slowly back to consciousness. The memory of the gentle brush of lips against his,  first deftly then an awkward smosh, called him out of the depths of slumber. </p><p>As his eyes popped open he felt the warm spots to either side of him  searching for the pleasant armfulls that had kept him safe all through the night. “They’re already in the shower.” Luka’s answer to his unvoiced question was accompanied by soft chuckling from his guitar.</p><p>It's the morning after the night before and everyone needs a little time to get their bearings. </p><p>Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Sorry for the long gap between the first chapter and this one. I had to work out a few details of the time between Miracle Queen and  Chapter 1 and that resulted in <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24592729">The Education of Luka Couffaine</a> (still a WiP atm).</p><p>Updated because I forgot to write in the kwami 😣.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Luka woke slowly. He could feel Marinette's back pressed against his chest. His arm was curled around her waist, hand against her bare belly which was snuggled against Adrien's side. Yesterday had been hard, what with the battle, and the revelations of Hawk Moth and Mayura’s identities. But they were here, now, together. Carefully he sat up and looked around the room. His tendency to be the first up was holding true. The only other person that appeared to be awake was Max. Who apparently had not moved from the chair in front of Adrien’s computer where he had been when Luka had fallen asleep. Scattered around Adrien's room were piles of their other friends with their kwami. Mylene, Mullo and Stompp were curled on Ivan’s chest over by the Foosball table. Alya and Nino were cuddling at one end of the couch, Sabrina and Chloé at the other, kwami scattered between them. His sister, Rose, and Alix made a pile under the piano and Kim and Ondine were sleeping on the window sill.</p><p>Carefully he eased his hand out from where it was trapped between Marinette and Adrien, only to feel a hand grab his wrist. He looked down to catch Kagami's eye from where she was curled on Adrien's other side. Her eyes opened slightly as he lifted her hand to place a gentle kiss on her palm. She closed them again and smiled sleepily then snuggled in closer, grasping at Mari’s hand where it rested on Adrien’s heart. One of the two most precious that he had sworn with her that they would protect all those months ago.</p><p>Luka scratched at Sass’ hood where the serpent was draped around his neck as he eased out from under the covers, grabbed up his guitar from where he had dropped it at the foot of their bed and hoisted himself onto the skate ramp by the window to play the sun up.</p>
<hr/><p>It was the sudden lack of warmth against her back that woke Marinette. For a moment she couldn't remember where she was, or how she got there. Then her pillow moved and she remembered. She was being held tight to Adrien’s (<em>Chat’s! Should be a bigger deal! but oh, he feels g~ood. Smells good too.) </em>right side, cheek against his (<em>naked! 0.o</em> <em>And when did that happen?!</em>) chest. She could feel him breathing the slow steady rhythms of deep sleep that she recognized from a couple impromptu Chat naps on her balcony, when he had visited her after a particularly hard day. Nothing short of an air horn or an Akuma was going to wake him at this point. Luka had found a guitar somewhere. She could hear him playing something soft and soothing. She opened her eyes slowly to see Kagami also blinking awake on Adrian’s other shoulder. She felt a smile bloom across her face in answer to the dragon girl’s happy smirk. </p><p>As Marinette tightened her grip on her girlfriend’s, <em> fiancée’s? figure it out later! </em>, hand she could feel a ring on Kagami’s finger as well. She was sure that if she was more awake she would be freaking out, as they really hadn't taken the opportunity to talk about what exactly this new relationship was, where it was going and what was going to happen now that Adrien’s father was almost certainly going to prison. Nino had cranked the tunes up almost as soon as they had gotten settled and Alya had enforced a strict moratorium on discussion of anything more serious than pizza toppings, the UMS III bracket and, where people were going to sleep, on the grounds of ‘having waited too damn long for this moment and Marinette is not allowed to ruin it by catastrophizing about the future, thank you very much!’  </p><p>The only thing she was sure of at this point was that she was possibly the only person in the room who wasn't pre-briefed on Chat’s proposal.      </p><p>“How long were you three planning this?” </p><p>Kagami closed her eyes as her grin grew wider. Her smiles have become much more natural over the last year. “Since right after Alya told us she figured out who you were.”</p><p>“WHAT!?!?!?” Marinette pushed herself straight up off the bed. <span>Plagg grumbled from the pile of kwami on the pillow, but</span> Adrian barely stirred from the increased pressure on his chest. <em> Wonderfully buff chest. Feels re~aly nice. No! can’t think about that now. More important issues. Focus. </em></p><p>“When did she figure it out? <em> How </em>did she figure it out? Us who? Why didn’t she tell me!?”</p><p>Marinette looked frantically around the room at the other piles of sleeping friends searching for her BFF. Her sweep stuttered briefly when it passed Luka, who was perched, in his boxers, on the skate ramp by the glass wall of windows, with one foot up on the platform, picking out something light in a Spanish style. </p><p><em> Do none of my boyfriends believe in wearing shirts to bed? </em>Marinette wasn't sure if her thought was in outrage or anticipation. And she was not going to take the time to find out.</p><p>“You would have to ask Alya.” Kagami said drowsily, as she snuggled in closer to Adrien’s left side, eyes closed in contentment.   </p><p>“Ask me what?” </p><p>Marinette looked toward the sound of Alya’s voice to see her and Nino coming out of the bathroom. Alya in a robe, vigorously drying her hair, Nino in just a towel and his hat.</p><p>Alya raised her voice to carry through the whole room and hollered  “Shower is free. Who's next?”</p><p>At the question Kagami popped up, to stand back toward the bed, and hollered back “Us!” as she laced her hands together above her head and stretched back till her torso was almost parallel to the floor. Marinette goggled at the realization that <em> none </em> of her intended seemed to feel a need to wear any more clothes to bed than absolutely necessary as the lithe young woman was dressed in her miraculous, rings, a <a href="https://www.eberjey.com/intimates/panties/myla-sophisticate-thong-2.html"> scarlet Eberjay lace thong </a> that was not even trying to hide her tight fencers butt, and not a stitch else. As Kagami came back up to standing Alya’s hair towel slapped into her chest where she trapped it reflexively with her elbows.</p><p>“Hoyden,” replied Alya, voice dripping with mock outrage, “Get in or get decent, you’ll frighten the horses.” </p><p>“I fail to see why a person in their underwear is supposed to be frightening,” said Max from over at Adrien’s desk in the distracted tones that signified he was focused on something and only paying cursory attention to what was going on outside the project of the moment. It registered this time that Alix was sitting on the near end playing with a rubix cube in only a cheap cotton camisole and boy-shorts. Fluff was floating upside down watching and slowly rotating counter clockwise back to upright.</p><p>Kagami turned back toward the now fire engine red Marinette. Right arm casually holding the towel over her pert breasts, left extended to take Marinette’s hand. A slight upturn at the corners of her mouth transformed her usually severe expression into one of mischievous joy.</p><p>“You can squeeze the details out of Alya later. We have other things to talk about first. Now give sleeping beauty a kiss and come get clean.” Then suiting her own actions to her words she bent down, brushed her lips against the sleeping boy’s, straightened, and then stared with one raised eyebrow until Marinette had bestowed her own blessing and crawled carefully over Adrien and out of the bed to follow her to the bathing room.</p><p>As soon as the doors were closed behind them Kagami dropped the towel, slipped off her knickers and marched briskly over to the shower area. “I wish we had time for a bath and some real <em> skinship </em>”, Kagami grumbled. Marinette blinked as the English-ish term brought back memories of the times Kagami had invited her to bathe together on her occasional visits to the Tsurugi home. “I hate to rush this,” she continued. “But too many others need the facilities.” Marinette heard the squeak of the control knob and whoosh of the water starting up from where she stood somewhat dazed in the antechamber. Kagami stuck her head back past the dividing wall, hair already dripping wet. “Could you bring a couple washcloths, please,”  then disappeared again. Marinette steeled herself for a moment and then, in a rush so she couldn't change her mind, pulled off her pajamas and underwear, retrieved the requested washcloths and ducked around the wall, arms wrapped around her torso in a vain attempt to hide her nakedness. Not having a yuamigi, the traditional Japanese bathing dress she had used on these occasions at Kagami’s own house. </p><p>Kagami was standing facing away from the wall, head thrown back in the spray, fingers digging through her hair, eyes closed in an expression of pure sensual enjoyment. Marinette stopped again in sheer aesthetic awe. Her arms tightened across her chest and belly as she compared herself, unfavorably, with the toned athlete, fingers twitching with the desire to capture the image as water cascaded down the naiad like the sheerest of silk. Ideas for outfits exploding through her mind like popcorn. </p><p>“Pass me the body wash, would you Marinette?”, she said, eyes still closed.</p><p>Marinette started, then looked around frantically, spotted the bottle by the wall and grabbed it up, then hesitantly approached the other girl, eyes slightly averted as she tried to figure out exactly where she was supposed to look now that the girl she was looking at was her <em>fiancée </em>. Naked. Really, really deliciously naked.</p><p>Eyes still closed, Kagami grabbed the body wash and a cloth. And moved smoothly out of the water and behind Marinette. Her sudden proximity propelled Marinette into the falling water like they were two south magnetic poles. After a moment of shock, she stood luxuriating in the warmth for a few seconds before feeling the sudden scrub of a soapy washcloth against her back. Marinette began to relax into the familiar sensation, before the fundamental cause of her  discomfort bubbled back up to the surface of her mind. </p><p>“Kagami...what...why…I...?”, she stopped, not quite sure what she was trying to ask.</p><p>“Because backs are hard to do yourself and I want you to do mine next.”</p><p>The strokes of the cloth were firm and methodical, at once comforting and distracting. </p><p>“Umm… Ah, those times  at your house when you invited me to share a bath it wasn’t just for ‘cultural exchange’ was it. You were showing off.” Marinette wasn't sure what answer would be worse. She had to work hard not to stare at her friend's toned and supple body. “Of course,” Kagami’s voice was matter-of-fact, even a little amused. “Did you like what you saw? I know I did.” Fire. That's how she was going to die. Spontaneous human combustion, from embarrassment, lust, and curiosity because now she <em> had </em>to ask. “Umm…” she licked her lips nervously.  “Have, have you done this with Adrien?” She blurted then bit her bottom lip, arms tightening around herself again. </p><p>“Not yet. We thought it best to wait until you were ready and everyone was together, before taking that step. Do you want me to call them now?” she said, eagerly. Marinette was glad of the water streaming over her face; it was the only thing keeping her from bursting into flame. </p><p>She buried her head in the flow, hoping that it covered her blush. As she felt the gentle scrub of the soapy cloth along her skin, she felt the muscles of her shoulders loosen for the first time in months. Then the scrubbing stopped and she felt strong fingers working shampoo into her scalp. As she leaned her head back into their gentle but firm ministrations, she felt tears well up in her eyes and mingle with the spray from the showerhead. </p><p> “Oh Kagami,” she gasped, the words choked out between horse sobs. “I… I’ve b-been so, so scared. For so long.”</p><p>“Scared of what?” came the gentile inquiry.</p><p>“That I. That <em> we </em> would never defeat Hawk Moth for good, we would just keep on fighting, and fighting, and fighting him forever. That Chat would be permanently hurt or,'' she swallowed.  “Or killed, and that I would never ever be able to tell him how much I love him. Ohhh. Ohhh, Mon dieu. Chat is Adrien!” Marinette whipped around all the fear and uncertainty that she had locked into a tiny box, so she could deal with the revelation that her worst enemy was the father of the one she loved most in the world spilling out of her like water overflowing a dam. “Your Adrien. How are we doing this? Why are you willing to share him with me? You should be so mad at me. I'm a boyfriend thief and a terrible friend, and...” Marinette felt gentle fingers sealing her lips as the other girls’ face swam into focus through her nerves. A soft smile bloomed across Kagami’s face.</p><p>They stared at each other for a moment and then Kagami gathered her into a tight hug under the falling water.</p><p>“Oh Mari, he's never been just mine. He was always <em> yours </em> first. Just like you have always been his. Fortunately for me, while he is no Oppi Dragon, I think his heart is big enough to hold all of us.” Kagami leaned back and looked Marinette in the eye. “Besides, it’s not so much that I’m sharing him, it’s that <em> he </em> is sharing <em> you </em> .” The intensity of the lascivious hunger in her expression left Marinette feeling both mortified and wildly aroused. “Now, let's finish up. The longer we are in here the more I want to kiss you and I promised Luka I would save our first <em> real </em> kiss for when he and Adrien could watch.”  Marinette's heart kicked up to a full gallop as she contemplated what the <em> very </em>intense young woman meant by “real kiss” and a thousand possible ways Adrien could react to seeing her kiss his girlfriend. Fortunately for her cardiac health they were able to finish the rest of their shower without too much additional teasing.  </p>
<hr/><p>Adrian swam slowly back to consciousness. The memory of the gentle brush of lips against his, first deftly then an awkward smosh, called him out of the depths of slumber. </p><p>As his eyes popped open he felt the warm spots to either side of him  searching for the pleasant armfuls that had kept him safe all through the night. “They’re already in the shower.” Luka’s answer to his unvoiced question was accompanied by soft chuckling from his guitar.</p><p> Adrien sat up  and swung his legs over to the side of the bed; his surge to his feet was interrupted by a firm hand on his sternum. “Settle down <em> Minou </em>, I don't think Mari is quite ready for all of us to join in ju~ust yet.” Adrien pouted in response then leaned in as Luka caught his out jutting lower lip between his teeth. <span>Tikki’s giggles at Plagg grumbling about non-cheese mushy stuff floated up from the bed.</span></p><p> </p><p>The kiss was interrupted by a sudden shriek. “And they are done anyway,” Luka observed sardonically, as he looked back over his shoulder. Adrien's eyes lit up as he looked around his boyfriend to where his <em> fiancées </em> were standing fresh and wet from their morning ablutions.  Marinette had re-doned the pajamas she was wearing when he had woken briefly after 2 am to shuck the jeans and t-shirt that were making it hard to sleep. Kagami had a towel slung around her hips, one hand clasped to the knot to keep it from slipping as she strode over to kiss them both good morning then dive into her bag to retrieve clothes for the day. Mari was standing frozen by the bathroom door making noises like a half plugged teakettle, hands clapped over her eyes. Juleka was trying to ease the squeeing Rose past her through the door to take their own turn at the shower, and failing. </p><p>Adrien felt a dopey grin spreading like dawn across his face as he ambled over to his Lady, trading a fist bump with Nino in passing. He had waited so long for this day.</p><p>“Hey Marinette,” he said, softly as he stopped just within arms reach of his first love. ”You OK?”  She shook her head violently, hands still plastered over her eyes, the whistle now replaced by great wheezing breaths. “It’s going to be alright princess," Adrien said. He felt Luka materializing at his shoulder as he gently curled his fingers around her palms and eased them down to hold her knuckles to his chest. Marinette’s eyes were closed as tightly as possible. Her button nose so cute as she tried to scrunch it up out of existence. Luka eased around behind her, gently wrapping his arms around her torso and resting his chin on the top of her head.</p><p>After a few deep breaths she finally opened her eyes, and he asked her again, “Are you OK?’”</p><p>"Fine!" she almost yelled. “You're just so hot, I mean it’s so hot. And I'm really not dressed for this. Well I am dressed but I shouldn't be and ohhgodwhat am I saying -- “ Adrien smiled as he captured her mouth with his own to shut off this adorable but obviously panicked babble. He broke the kiss after he felt her relax again and leaned his forehead against hers. </p><p>“Good morning m’lady'' he chuckled. “Do you want to try this again?”  He felt more than saw her answering nod.  </p><p>Adrien’s smile grew wider. “Did you sleep well?” Marinette's answer was another nod, still more felt then seen, her eyes still closed though no longer squeezed tight.  </p><p>“I did too. Thank you for holding me.” Marinette mumbled "you’re welcome" was almost inaudible.  “Did you enjoy your shower?”  </p><p> “Ummmm,“ Marinette temporized. Adrien had not realized that a person could turn that shade of red.</p><p>“It’s OK if you did.”  At this Marinette's head drew back and she finally opened her eyes. A look of complete crogglement on her face. Until she glanced down. Her face whipped toward the ceiling so fast she almost poked him in the eye with her chin, eyes sealed up like a Swiss vault. “Adrien would you mind putting on a shirt, please. You are very distracting and I already don't know what to say.” Adrien could hear the effort she was putting into using her Ladybug voice.  “Marinette. Just, breath. Tell us what you feel. You don't have to be afraid of being wrong,” came Luka’s whispered counsel. His cheek resting against the side of her head. </p><p>“Why do you have to be so pretty?!” She whimpered.</p><p>“It’s OK to look, Marinette,” Luka continued, apparently having divined the source of their <em> fiancée </em>’s distress. “All that we are is yours already.”</p><p>“I ...Just…” She stopped, took a couple of deep breaths and started over.</p><p>“I don’t know how I'm supposed to feel right now,” she said in a very small voice. “I thought I was OK being just friends. Ladybug, <em> the Guardian</em>, didn't have time to fall in love. I thought I had gotten over you, so seeing you with Kagami shouldn't hurt anymore. And I thought I was OK just being friends with Chat when he got a girlfriend. I kept turning him, you, down after all, and it was horribly selfish to expect you, him, to wait, though I knew Luka would wait for me to be ready no matter how long that was, and I was <em> fine</em>.” Adrien could see tears leaking gently from the corner of Marinette's eyes. “And then yesterday you asked me to marry you, and Kagami, and Luka and all those feelings I thought had gone away came roaring back like the Startrain, bringing extra ones I didn't know I’d ever had. And they’re all jumbled together. I feel jealous and turned on and scared and happy and like I'm taking something that's not mine,” Marinette’s voice tripped over her words, lungs heaving to keep up.    </p><p> “How is this supposed to <em> work</em>?!” she wailed.</p><p>Kagami answered suddenly from the side “You marry Luka. I’ll marry Adrien. Ladybug and Chat Noir can have a huge public ceremony with all of Paris attending. Luka and I will have a torrid public affair after you and Adrian are caught ‘<em>en flagrante delicto </em>’ backstage at Fashion Week. Everyone will be scandalized for about a month that we would be so gauche as to be carrying on publicly instead of being discrete like normal people, and then we'll all settle down to have half a dozen kids and grow wine at some chateau in the country.” Marinette hiccoughed though her tears as she giggled at the completely deadpan delivery of this wild plan.</p><p>“Better?” Kagami chirped.</p><p>Marinette took a deep breath. “Better,” came the confident pronouncement. </p><p>“Good,” Kagami said. “I solved the problem. That means I get to claim the reward.” Swiftly the swords-woman struck, tangling her left hand behind Marinette's head and drawing her into a kiss the went on for quite awhile, Marinette stiffening briefly at first than relaxing into the exchange with evident relish. Only breaking off and sinking back into Luka’s chest, hiding her blush in her hair, at Kim and Xuppu’s enthusiastic whistling from the sidelines.</p><p>Adrien, let loose from his enchantment at the beautiful sight, cursed their audience under his breath, hoping that none of them were paying attention to the evidence of his appreciation stirring in his boxer-briefs. As much as he appreciated all of his friends' support, right now he wished they were all gone so he could scoop up the beauties in front of him and carry them back to bed to work out the details of their new relationship.</p><p>He could hear several other people berating Kim for interrupting “the good part” followed by Max’s voice cutting through the hubbub. I apologize for interrupting the festivities, but they just announced Hawk Moth’s arrest. Anyone who doesn't want to be here for the media circus that will descend in 8 minutes 47 seconds, needs to leave <em> now </em> .” With that he turned up the volume so everyone could hear Mayor Bourgeois frantically distancing himself from his longtime friend and political supporter, while they scrambled madly into their street clothes. Adrien turned towards his three <em> fiancés </em>and said, “You all probably shouldn't be here when they get here either.”</p><p>“Like hell, Kitty!” Adrien’s heart swelled at the sound of Marinette’s pure indignation at the idea that she would abandon him, her partner, in his moment of need. “As much as I appreciate the sentiment, I don’t know how much of a mess this is going to be Marinette, and you should not suffer the social damage that being seen with me right now would cause.”  </p><p>“He’s right, you know,” Kagami, said thoughtfully. “Our support will be much more effective if it doesn't look like we already know about what happened.”  </p><p>While Marinette stewed over this logic the mayor finally finished his whimpering and turned the podium over to Officer Raincomprix as head of Akuma Operations Task Force. “They should have called ahead to warn you,” she grumped, then brightened as an idea hit her. “Well if Marinette can’t be here at least Ladybug can. And Chloé ought to be here too.”  </p><p><span>She turned toward where their golden team mate was just waking up on the couch and hollering</span> <span>in protest at the early hour</span><span>. “Ridiculous, utterly ridiculous. What are you all doing, making such a horrible racket at this uncivilized time of the morning?” she groused, as she sat up and removed her rhinestone encrusted sleep mask</span><span>, passing it to Pollen who took it to Sabrina who was racing around with Barkk making sure the two girls were all packed up and ready to go</span><span>. “They just announced Hawk Moth.” Marinette responded. “You and Ladybug need to be here when the press arrives so we can help run interference.” </span></p><p>“Well, obviously,” Chloé huffed, then strode to her bag and began selecting her most impressive available outfit for the day. Everyone else stilled in surprise at her pronouncement.</p><p>Officer Rogers' voice fell like lead in the sudden silence. “-e freezing all of M. Agreste’s assets until a thorough investigation can be made.”</p><p>No one spoke for a tense moment, then Alex’s voice burst into the pregnant atmosphere. “Well, fuck. That doesn't sound good.”</p><p> “It’s not good.” Adrien’s voice sounded hollow in his own ears <span>as Plagg settled on top of his head, patting him comfortingly</span>. “Not good at all.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you to everyone who has come back to read this, my first story.  I am disgraphic (like dyslexia but going the other way) so writing can take me a long time even without the interruptions of life. </p><p>My great gratitude to my beta missmatch and all the rest of the <i>Fabulous</i> people at the <a href="https://discord.gg/mlfanworks"> Miraculous Fanworks Discord</a>, who have encouraged me and kept me going. If you write or draw for this fandom, or just want to, come play with us.</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Works in this Series are in no particular chronological order, but are in the same continuity. </p><p>The arrangement Adrian was playing<br/>https://youtu.be/X2Ypt2vFF5Y?t=280</p></blockquote></div></div>
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